Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today voted for and the House passed H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, and H.R. 1446, the Enhanced Background Checks Act, to clarify and strengthen firearms transfer laws.
H.R. 8 requires a background check for every gun sale or transfer. The bill provides some specific commonsense exceptions such as allowing a person to give a gun as a gift to a family member; loaning a gun for hunting or target shooting; or temporarily transferring a gun for self-defense.
H.R. 1446 would close the so-called “Charleston Loophole” that allowed the shooter who killed nine people at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church in 2015 to acquire a gun despite being prohibited from a gun purchase because the FBI could not complete his background check within the mandated three-day period.
Congressman Cohen made the following statement:
“We need to keep guns out of the wrong hands while honoring the rights of lawful gun owners. These measures are commonsense solutions to identified problems with our gun laws, and I’m proud to support them. Smart gun laws and consistent enforcement will save lives.”
H.R. 8 is supported by Everytown for Gun Safety, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, United States Conference of Mayors, Major Cities Chiefs Association, Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, Hispanic American Police Commanders Association, VoteVets, Third Way, American Medical Association, American Public Health Association, American College of Physicians, American Nurses Association, Catholic Health Association of the United States, National Education Association, American Federation of Teachers, National PTA, NAACP, League of Women Voters, and MomsRising.
H.R. 1446 is supported by United States Conference of Mayors, Major Cities Chiefs Association, Police Executive Research Forum, Giffords Law Center, Everytown for Gun Safety, Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, Center for American Progress, National Urban League, Human Rights Campaign, National Education Association, Community Justice Action Fund, Newtown Action Alliance, Survivors Empowered Action Fund, Bishops United Against Gun Violence, Nurses Against Gun Violence, Doctors Demand Action, #ThisIsOurLane, MomsRising, American Federation of Teachers, Amnesty International, Children’s Defense Fund, Doctors for America, and American Medical Student Association.
Original source can be found here.
